//------------------------------//
// Act 22: Learn to Modify 
// Story: The Eight-Six Duo 
// by Fujimi200SX 
//------------------------------//

Dear Itsuki Takeuchi,

Though I have a hard time believing you want to upgrade your "Eight-Six" for sanctioned circuit racing, because you were honest with me about what you are going to use them on, I have decided to grant you these funds. Seeing as you do not have an online account, the funds should appear in a few bags along with this envelope. I hope that by doing this, you feel better to be here in Equestria. Better than Takumi, at least.

I should also mention-

Twilight Sparkle wasn't able to read the rest of the letter as Itsuki SCREAMED with happiness.

"Celestia actually gave me money to upgrade my 86! YES! Holy crap this life is AWESOME!" Itsuki grabbed on of the five large bags of bits. Or at least he tried to. He could barely get a magical grip on it. "I don't care what the heck Takumi says. Compared to the life I had before? I mean, FREE MONEY from a freaking PRINCESS?! YES!"

Wait, ITSUKI!" Twilight called out as she watched Itsuki take the top of a bag in his mouth and ran out with it. Her jaw dropped. "WHY DO THOSE TWO JUST LEAVE WHENEVER THEY FEEL LIKE IT?!"

"I dunno," Spike replied. "Hey, he just got the money to upgrade his car. He has a reason to be excited."

"I... ugh. Still." Twilight internally read the rest of the message. "It's about Cadance leaving for the Crystal Empire."

"Oh he doesn't need to know that."

"Yeah, I guess..." Twilight sighed. "Might as well let him have his fun."





Not ten minutes later, Itsuki had the gold bits in his Levin and was driving around Ponyville, looking for an aftermarket parts shop.

Looking for an Aftermarket Parts Shop... in Ponyville.

Judging by the fact that there wasn't a single modern building except for the Carousel Boutique and town hall, that was impossible. Because there literally wasn't an aftermarket shop of any kind around Ponyville.

"Where's a racing shop when you need one?" he asked as he cruised at an abysmally slow speed. 6 Miles Per Hour. Just barely above the engine's idle.

He was about to say screw it, hit the highway, and drive to Fieldsdale since he knew he saw at least ONE racing shop there, when something knocked on his window. He looked to his right to spot, to his surprise, Scootaloo.

Itsuki yelped and pressed on the brake, bringing the Levin to a quick stop. Scootaloo skidded to a stop a few feet ahead, apparently on a scooter. She reversed back as Itsuki rolled down the window.

"Scootaloo, were you just using your WINGS to move forward?" Itsuki asked.

"Yep! It's a thing I learned," Scootaloo replied.

"Huh. Nice. So what do you want?"

Scootaloo stretched her wings. "I-eee was wondering if you were doing anything today."

"Well I'm about to go find some engine parts for my Levin. Celestia just gave me some money so I'll be spending the rest of the day getting some parts installed."

Scootaloo blinked. "Can... Can I come?"

Itsuki was surprised. "Why?"

Scootaloo sighed. "Well, my friends are doing their own thing, Rainbow Dash has barely been hanging out with me lately because she's been hanging out with you, and I don't know what to do. So... yeah. Can I come with you?"

Itsuki stared for a second. "Well... I mean... I guess it wouldn't hurt. Maybe you could help me install some parts."

Scootaloo's face lit up like a Christmas Tree as she jumped off her scooter, grabbed it, and ran around the front of the Levin to get in on the left side. She threw her scooter into the backseat, shut the door, and buckled up as quickly as possible.

"Alright, let's go," she said.

Itsuki laughed. "Ok then." I officially love fillies. They are the cutest living things ever.

He put the Levin back into gear and slowly accelerated.

"You know any racing shops around here?"

Scootaloo shook her head. "Not in Ponyville. But I remember a Toyota Racing Division building being over in that town beneath Cloudsdale."

"Fieldsdale? Awesome! They'll have the perfect parts for my 86!"

Itsuki guided the Levin through the town. The satisfaction he felt when he got on a tarmac road to drive to Fieldsdale was immeasurable.

"You know... I've actually kinda been getting into cars."

Itsuki smirked. "Oh really?"

"Mhm. Ever since you took me and Rainbow Dash to Canterlot, I've been looking up some stuff about street racing. Cars, where ponies like to race, you know."

"Nice. Any cars you like so far?"

"Umm... there's a few. I like the R34 Skyline. And the Toyota Supra is a good one."

Itsuki smiled and happily nodded. "Yeah. Those are some pretty good cars. Dang, I could actually get those now that I think about it."

Scootaloo returned the smile. "Yeahhh. Except there's this other car I really like. A Mazda RX-7. The newest one."

"Ooooo the FD? Now that's a great one. One of Takumi's friend drives one of those. Keisuke Takahashi."

"Yeah, you told me and Rainbow Dash about him."

"Mhm. That guy's insane. A real asshole sometimes but his skills are great. Not as good as Takumi's, obviously."

"Hey!"

"OH! Crap! Sorry. Language. I'm not around kids very often."

Scootaloo smiled as she peered out the window.





"CLOSED?! OH COME ON!" Itsuki yelled as he stared at the CLOSED sign hanging in the front door. "It's like the middle of the day!"

"8:57," Scootaloo corrected.

Itsuki scoffed. "Still." He eyed a stack of magazines next to the door and sighed. "Well, I guess we could read these while we wait."

He picked one of the magazines up in his weak magical grasp and laid down. "Man this is hard."

"Want me to hold it?" Scootaloo asked as she sat next to him.

"Sure."

Scootaloo took the magazine and held it up. Itsuki was surprised at the cover car.

"Oh dang! A Nine-Two model!"

Scootaloo's jaw dropped. "A Nine-Two?"

"Yeah. AE92. Successor to my Eight-Six. Sounds great in every way except for the fact it's an FF."

"FF?"

"Front Engined, Front Wheel Drive. You know."

"Uhh... Itsuki?"

"Hm?"

"This car is rear wheel drive."

Itsuki looked at the car. Indeed. As stated by the "163HP of RWD Fun!" message, the AE92 was Rear Wheel Drive.

"Huh. That's pretty cool. Wait, Toyota E90 Sprinter Trueno aftermarket parts..?"

"What about it?"

Itsuki's face lit up. "If this still uses the 4A-GE, I might be able to use it for my 86! Open it up. Let's see what there is."

Scootaloo smiled as she did what was asked of her, flipping to the first page which held the Table of Contents.

"Alright let's see. Engine, Suspension, Transmission, Exterior Parts..." Itsuki read the ToC. He sighed. "Let's go to the stuff about the Engine."

For the next few minutes, the pair flipped through the catalog. Itsuki, having read through countless magazines and aftermarket parts catalogs, filled Scootaloo in on what each part did. Intakes, Exhausts, you name it. Whatever Scootaloo wanted to know about, Itsuki would tell. She was a good listener. Itsuki was a good talker.

They blended well together.

"What- that's just a bar. That is literally a bar. What is this?" Scootaloo asked.

"That's a strut bar," Itsuki replied. "Makes the car more rigid... Honestly, I should probably get one."

"Why does the car need to be rigid?"

"Well, in general it won't outright improve the car's cornering, but it does make it more predictable. That's good."

"Hm..."

The two spent another minute reading through, each commenting about what parts they liked or disliked, be it for looks or function. They were so drawn into the catalog that they didn't notice another car pulling in. A silver sedan.

"That's a carbon fiber mirror," Itsuki said. "Another thing I might get."

THUNK

The two looked up to see an older stallion, maybe thirty, staring at them from behind his car. A silver Lexus IS300 with zero modifications. The earth pony was mostly bronze in color save for his bluish-green eyes and red hair. He wore a white clerk's outfit and some saddlebags.

"What are you two doing?" the stallion asked.

"Oh, we're just reading this till the place opens. That's all," Itsuki replied.

"Hm. You're in luck then because I'm here to open it up."

"You are? Sweet!" Itsuki stepped up on all fours. "Should we put the magazine back or..?"

"Nah, keep it. We have plenty." The stallion glanced over at Itsuki's Levin. "Hm. Don't think I've seen one of these in a while. AE86 Levin, huh?"

"Yeah, it's mine."

"Hm. How much did it cost?"

"Weeellll I think it was around uh... hm... somewhere around 950,000 to a million yen. I know it was under a million, so..."

The stallion tilted his head. "Yen?"

"Heeee's not exactly from here," Scootaloo stated.

The stallion shrugged. "Should have guessed considering your license plate and the fact that this thing is right hoof drive." He cleared his throat. "I'm Polara, by the way."

"Itsuki Takuechi," Itsuki replied.

"And I'm Scootaloo!"

Polara blinked. "Itsuki... Tak-eh-yoo-ee-chi." He smiled as he gently shook his head. "If that isn't the coolest name I've ever heard, I don't what is."

Itsuki chuckled. "Takeuchi. Not Takeuichi. Except, to be honest, yeah. That does sound pretty sweet."

"Mm." Polara grabbed a pair of keys from his outfit's pocket then inserted them in the front door. He pushed it open and led the two inside, taking down the CLOSED sign.

"Nice Altezza by the way," Itsuki remarked as he and Scootaloo followed Polara inside.

"Altezza? Nah, that's an IS300. The models in Ponyland are the Altezza's," Polara replied.

"Oh. But they're the same thing, aren't they?"

"Yeah, they are. But still." Polara stopped suddenly, staring right at Itsuki.

"What?" Itsuki asked, stopping.

"Are... are you an Alicorn?"

Itsuki smiled. "Heck yeah I am! I look pretty good, don't I?"

Polara's jaw dropped.  "I am staring at a male Alicorn... holy shit I'm staring at an Alicorn! At my work!"

"Yeah! You sure are! So! What parts do you guys have?"

Polara shook his head. "Uh- Plenty! Plenty! What are you looking for?"

"Well, I'm really just looking for things to make my car run better. And I don't just mean the engine."

"I-Is there any specific power output you want?"

"At least two hundred. I've got a race tonight so I need it quick. Honestly, the only things I want is 200HP and better brakes. Maybe even limited slip differential. Maybe if we have time, I can buy a strut bar and some other things."

"Yeah! Of course! Here, have a look around, see what you like. I need to make a call."

"Sure thing!"

As Polara trotted away, Itsuki grabbed a parts catalog and began flipping through as best as he could. "Hey, Scootaloo, you can look around if you want. See if there's anything you like."

"Okay!"





Polara grabbed a phone and dialed a number.

"Comeon comeon comeon comeoooon," the stallion said as he listened to it ring.

"Hello?" asked a tired voice.

"Lenovo? Lenovo! You are NOT going to believe this! You need to get your rump down here right now!"

The voice yawned. "Dude, you know I don't show up for another hour."

"No no! Listen, there is a freaking ALICORN here! Right now!"

"PTOOIE! THERE'S A WHAT?!"

"YEAH! His name's Itsuki. Dude, he is here, RIGHT NOW, looking for parts for his AE86."

"His AE86? Who the hell uses that!?"

"HE DOES apparently! Listen, you know your way around SR20's and 4A-GE's better than anyone I know. He's looking for at least 200HP and I mean an EFFICIENT 200HP. Reputation will SKYROCKET if he gives a good statement about us!"

"Ok, I'm heading downstairs and getting in my car RIGHT NOW. Help him with anything he needs and give him one of our bays, alright?"

"Gotcha. See you when you get here."

"You too."

Click

Polara took a deep breath in. "Ok. There is an Alicorn in my work. There is an Alicorn in my work, there is an Alicorn in my work. All I need to do is make sure he's happy and provide him with whatever he needs... Would allowing him to have whatever parts he wants for free be overkill? I mean, he's an Alicorn..."

He eyed the phone again. "Might as well call the boss."





Itsuki followed Scootaloo into an isle.

"Riiight... here!" Scootaloo stopped and pointed at a box.

Itsuki whistled as he read the title. "Carbon Ceramic Brakes, 6 Piston Calipers?! Holy crap I thought this stuff was only used on full-blown racecars!"

"You'd be surprised," Polara said as he stopped next to them. "Being made by Brembo, they're expensive as heck but they last a stupidly long time. Since this one has six pistons, you could be fully underwater and they'd still stop you on a dime."

Itsuki smiled. "Yeah... yeah, this is perfect. How much for it?"

"Free."

Itsuki's jaw dropped. "I'm sorry?"

"You're an Alicorn. No Alicorn should have to pay for things, right?"

The dumbest smiles appeared on both Itsuki's and Scootaloo's faces.

"Heck. Yes," they both said.

"I've got a buddy coming down here," Polara stated. "He owns an AE92 and knows all about the 4AGE."

Itsuki continued his smile. "Sweet. But man, this is great! I'm actually gonna get some competent mods on my 86!"

"And I get to Learn how to Modify cars, right?" Scootaloo asked.

"Of course you can! I'll show you."

Scootaloo squeed. Itsuki thought it was the most adorable thing ever.

Polara smiled. "By the way, how would you feel if we gave you one of the bays to work on your car in?"

Itsuki was ecstatic. "I would give you the best five star review ever."

"YES! So! What are ya buyin'?"

Itsuki bit his lip. Ohhhh scrr-REW Takumi and him wanting to go home! Come on! We get free parts, a free place to work on our cars, I didn't even HAVE to ask Celestia for money! I LOVE BEING AN ALICORN!!!

Polara cleared his throat.

"Oh! Right. So, these brakes, first of all. And then... hm... maybe some ignition wiring... oh yeah! An ECU. The best one you've got."

"Standalone ECU? Got it. Anything else?"

"A strut bar would be nice. I wanna keep things small since I've only got the rest of the day to modify the thing. Here, lemme get my car in a bay. Which one should I park in?"

"The one furthest on the left."

"Sounds good. I'll go do that. Scootaloo, you comin?"

Scootaloo nodded.

"Alright, let's go."





Pretty soon, Itsuki's 86 was on a car lift, hoisted only half a foot in the air. Itsuki was showing Scootaloo how to change a wheel. To say the filly was having fun was very accurate.

When they got to draining the brake lines and replacing them, also replacing the brakes with the Carbon Ceramic ones, you'd think she was discovering the power of flight with the way she smiled.

Itsuki had a thought as he reconnected a brake line. "Hey, Scootaloo?"

"Yeah?"

"How come I've never seen you flying?"

"...Because I can't."

Itsuki was surprised. "Why not?"

Scootaloo shrugged.

"Hm... That explains That I guess."

EEEEE!

Itsuki looked at the open garage door. "I wonder what that was."

He got up and walked outside. His eyes fell on a red car that had parked next to the IS300. A Silver Toyota AE92 Trueno. Nothing fancy. An SR5 with some light modifications.

"Oh dang, look at that. A Nine-Two," Itsuki said as he walked back into the shop. To his surprise, Scootaloo had put the rear right rim back on. "What the... how did you do that?"

Scootaloo shrugged.

Itsuki rolled his eyes. "Great. Well, time to get working on the engine. It's not just the brakes I want done."

"NO! HOLD ON!" a new voice yelled as another stallion came barreling through the door. A maroon one with a similar work outfit to Polara. "Hoolllllyyyyyyy SHIII-THERE'S A FILLY HERE why is there a filly here-" He took in a breath. "WOW you are an actual Alicorn."

Itsuki smiled. "Yep. I sure am."

The stallion bowed. "I'm uh- I'm Lenovo."

"Itsuki Takeuchi."

"Well. Uhh... eheh... umm..."

"Are you the friend Polara said knew all about 4A-GE's?" Itsuki asked.

"He is," Polara replied, walking in.

"So um..." Lenovo cleared his throat and straightened his posture. "You said you wanted to upgrade your car?"

"Yep," Itsuki said before pointing at his Levin. "Here she is. My AE86 Levin."

"...Dang... Uh, alright. Is it the stock engine?"

"Yep. With 162,000 kilometers."

"Can I see it?"

"The engine? Sure thing. One sec."

Itsuki opened the starboard door and reached under the steering wheel, clumsily pulling the hood latch. Lenovo when to the front and opened the hood.

Lenovo whistled. "Bone Stock. Perfect for modifying. Uh, you said you wanted how much power?"

"At least 200."

Lenovo nodded. "Ok. That's easy to get to. You just need a turbo."

"Nope! Mm-mm." Itsuki shook his head. "I don't want a Turbo. I've driven a turbo car before and the lag on it was insane."

Lenovo was surprised. "What kind of teenager doesn't..." He shrugged. "Ok, well, do you want a supercharger?"

"Mm... Maybe." He sighed. "I just need 200HP by 9:00 tonight."

"Nine tonight?! What's the hurry?"

"I've got a race. Mountain Race."

Lenovo pursed his lips and nodded in approval. "Okay. Nice. What car are you racing?"

"A uh... BMW. An E30 Evo Three."

Both Lenovo and Polara were surprised. "An E30 Evo?!" they exclaimed in unison.

"Yeah. I uh... can't say who the driver is, though."

"Hm. Well, damn. Er, dang! Sorry, language," Lenovo glanced at Scootaloo, who was sitting next to a wheel. The filly rolled her eyes.

Lenovo looked back at Itsuki. "An E30 Evo, though? That's one heck of a car. A rally car for the road."

Itsuki chuckled. "Yeah, I know, right?"

"You're gonna need a bit more than power to beat an E30 Evo in an AE86."

"Like what?"

"Transmission, Suspension, all that. Well- I guess it depends a lot on how good you are at driving, so..."

Polara rolled his eyes. "So let me get this straight. You are a driver of an AE86 Levin, who wants to beat a BMW E30 Evolution Three, on a mountain road?"

Itsuki nodded. "Yeah, pretty much."

"And you need 200HP before tonight."

"Mhm."

Polara took in a deep breath, held it for a few seconds, then let it out. He looked at Scootaloo. "Hey, uh... who are you, again?"

"Scootaloo," the filly replied.

"How well can you twist wrenches?"

"Pretty well. Why?"

Itsuki stepped forward. "I wanna teach her how to modify a car. Could be fun."

"Hm... well, Scootaloo, you're gonna be doing a bunch of work. We're gonna need all the hooves we can get if we want to get this car ready within a day."

"Okay," Scootaloo replied. "I can help. I don't do much anyways."

Itsuki smiled. "Hey, even if we don't get to 200HP, I'm sure I can pull out a win. Now!" He grabbed a wrench with his mouth. "Eht's oo iss!"





"I'm not gonna pull this off."

Fleetfoot tilted her head. "What do you mean you're not gonna pull this off?"

Thunderlane looked at the mare. "Did you SEE the kind of speed Itsuki was doing before he clocked off? Sure, the guy was tired, but he was moving as fast as I usually go. AND he's DRIFTING."

Fleetfoot scoffed. "You say that like you don't drift."

"Yeah, but that's me having fun. Not me on an actual time attack."

The mare smirked as she and Thunderlane walked towards Spitfire's office. "I'm surprised you're this nervous, Thunderlane. It's not like you to be afraid of something as pitiful as an AE86, you having a Rally Car that you rebuilt yourself."

"Shut up. Also, how many times do I have to admit that Spitfire helped me restore the thing?"

"Until the day you get some actual skill."

"What's this about Thunderlane getting some actual skill?" a new voice asked.

The two looked ahead to see Spitfire peering from the doorway of her office.

"Morning, Spitfire," Fleetfoot greeted.

"Morning." Spitfire turned and walked back into her office, Fleetfoot and Thunderlane in tow. "So. Thunderlane. What's wrong with Itsuki? He's only a teenage Alicorn."

"That isn't funny," Thunderlane growled. "Also, what happened to you wanting to defend our pride?"

Spitfire sat down at her desk, opening a tab on her computer. "I was mad because I couldn't understand how an AE86 of all things beat me. Then... I found out who and what Takumi was. Is. He's... unique."

"Unique, huh?" Fleetfoot smiled as she sat in front of Spitfire's desk. Thunderlane also sat down.

"Yeah. Every pony his age I've met, that's in the automotive community, is either snarky and over-confident in their abilities, or they're super quiet introverts who don't do much. You can guess which one I prefer. But Takumi..." Spitfire smiled. "He's different. He's quiet, but he isn't an introvert. Not to mention he's a natural driver true skill."

"Natural Driver with True Skill?" Thunderlane asked.

Spitfire nodded. "If I'm being honest, I'm actually really excited to talk with Takumi. There are just so many things I want to ask him."

Fleetfoot rubbed her eyes. "Like what?"

"Come on. A nineteen year old ALICORN as good as he is? He's as good as a lot of professionals my age, his car is tuned better than any other street racer's car I've ever seen..." She chuckled. "His car... ohhh now that is a car I want to get under the hood of for a VERY long time..."

"Ahh, so you're interested in both him and his car."

"Mmmhm."

"So, why did you two want me here?" Thunderlane asked.

"We wanted to know if you had a plan. That's all," Spitfire replied.

"Well... I don't really know. I mean, his in an AE86 and I have him on the straightaways. But the corners..."

"So, you'll just speed ahead of him on the straightaways?"

"What else am I supposed to do? My only advantage is my car. I haven't been driving for as long as you two."

Spitfire smirked. "Well, at least you're not an idiot. You at least know that it's not gonna be an easy battle."

Thunderlane sighed. "I just... to think Takumi was as fast you in MY car, and I'm not even half as quick in the thing, I'm just... ugh."

"Hey, I'm meeting Takumi, remember? We could ask him if he could drive your car downhill. Maybe you can get some pointers from him."

"In broad daylight? Seriously?"

"Being Captain of the Wonderbolts, I literally own this mountain. I can shut down the road."

Thunderlane was surprised. "I... never knew that."

"Well, you do now."

"So," Fleetfoot began. "What've you been doing?"

"Researching that move of his. With the gutter." Spitfire turned the monitor to show the two. "Look. I've look everywhere, and that move is NOWHERE. Lifting your tire over a gutter is something nopony else has done. Or at least put on the internet. The only gutter-related thing I've found is just jumping the gutter to put your tires on a better inside line. Never lifting a tire over it for the whole turn."



The screen showed a Nissan R34 GT-R jumping a gutter, easily gaining an inside line on the turn. Once the turn ended, it jumped back over the gutter, coming a few feet from the guardrail before speeding away.

"So he came up with it by himself?" Fleetfoot asked.

"Maybe," Spitfire replied. " But... there is a lot of practicality for it."

"Practicality?"

"Er, racing. You know." Spitfire sighed. "That move? It's not just a way to gain a better line. It's a GENIUS way to gain more grip."

Thunderlane was confused. "Wait, huh? How do you gain grip by lifting a whole tire off the ground? That doesn't make any sense."

"I'm confused too," a new voice said. The three looked to the door to spot Soarin peeking in.

"You're removing tire contact with the ground, to gain more grip?" he asked.

Spitfire buried her face in her hooves. "Why do I have to be the only Professional Racer on this team?" she mumbled before raising her head.

"Lifting a tire," she began as Soarin stepped next to Thunderlane, "is something professional racecars do when they're set up with stiff suspensions. It goes back decades, back when they still used Bias Ply Tires. See, when a car goes into a turn, it practically wedges itself into the corner. Weight goes to the outside, which makes the outside tires put in a lot more work than the inside."

"However, the car will want to distribute grip equally to all four tires. As a result, you actually waste grip on the insides, simply because it isn't needed there.


Initial D Fourth Stage Sound Files vol.1 - Impreza starts playing.

Very recent memories of the battle between Takumi and herself flowed through her mind.

"By lifting a tire, you force weight to the tires that need it. On a rear wheel drive car, the inner front tires have the least grip in a turn. So if you lift the inner front tire, you put more weight on the rear, allowing you to accelerate harder out of a turn."

The AE86 did just that, lifting its inner tires and simultaneously accelerating out of a turn.

"You ever see front wheel drive cars lifting a rear tire when coming into a turn? Well, when they do that, ALL the weight is sent to the front tires. Since they're the ones doing the turning, they pull the whole car through the turn. And they do it way faster than any rear or all wheel drive car."

Soarin snickered. "Ah, so there's a reason so many ponies resort to Honda Civic's."

Spitfire rolled her eyes. "Pshh. Nope. I doubt half of them even know the trick."

"Hm. So, how does him doing this trick with the gutter work?"

"It's pretty simple, actually." Spitfire turned her monitor back towards herself. "You can't really get as stiff a ride in the streets as you can on the track. Street Cars just don't have the right suspension for it. Lifting your inner tire on street suspension is next to impossible."

"With the gutter," she continued, "You are lifting the wheel while maintaining the characteristics of a softer suspension. Plus, you do it in a way that doesn't reduce stability too much."

"There is, of course, a downside," Fleetfoot interrupted.

Spitfire was surprised. "Oh really?"

Fleetfoot nodded with a smirk. "You aren't the only one that researched Inner Wheel Lifting."

Spitfire smirked. "Well why don't you tell us, then?"

"It. Is. HARD. You need to be right on the limit of grip if you want to pull it off. It requires you to be perfect with the accelerator to make full use of the extra grip without going overboard, while at the same time making sure you keep enough weight off the inner tire so you don't fall in."

"Which is why I'm so interested in him," Spitfire said. "Somepony his age would have no way of being able to do tricks like that so well without YEARS of prior practice. I want to know how he has so much skill."

"Maybe he raced karts a lot," Fleetfoot suggested. "Plenty of good racers emerged from kart racing."

Spitfire tapped her chin. "Maybe. But he would've had to practice nonstop for years. The only pony I know that raced karts like CRAZY is Rainbow Dash. That mare was unbeatable in every race she entered. I'm sure we would've heard about Takumi."

Spitfire paused. "Rainbow Dash... hm... does anypony know if Rainbow Dash even owns a car?"

Fleetfoot cleared her throat. "Ahem, Takumi?"

"Right, right." Spitfire let out a happy sigh. "Us talking about cars and techniques like this- ohhh I cannot WAIT to meet with him. What time is it?"

"Almost ten."

"Darnit! Two hours. Ugh. Well, Thunderlane, Soarin, you two are dismissed. Fleetfoot, feel free to do whatever."

The aforementioned stallions looked at each other, shrugged, then took their leave. Fleetfoot looked at Spitfire once the two were far away, door closed.

"Two hours. What do you think he'll be doing?"

Spitfire shrugged. "Probably talking with the princesses. Anyways." She got up from her chair. "Two Hours. Might as well make myself presentable."

Fleetfoot raised an eyebrow. "Oh? And why would a Fiery Mare like yourself need to make yourself 'presentable' for a lowly teenager like him?"

Spitfire shot her a look. "Fleetfoot, do you seriously think I'd fall for a kid like him that easily? Even if he's an Alicorn?"

"Considering he's an Alicorn that beat you in a downhill streetrace with an econobox, I do."

Spitfire glared at Fleetfoot, who stared back with a slug look on her face.

After several seconds, Spitfire smiled. "I hate you."

"Are you sure about that?" Fleetfoot asked.

"No, not really."

Music Ends.





Cadance was just finishing up tidying her room when Celestia walked in.

"Oh. Hello, Celestia," the Love Princess greeted.

"Hello, Cadance," Celestia greeted back. "I came to see you off."

"Mm..."

Celestia sat next to the bed. "Is something wrong?"

Cadance shook her head. "No..."

Celestia stopped Cadance with a hoof. "Cadance..."

Cadance sighed as she met Celestia's eyes. "Celestia, can I-... can I hug you?"

Celestia, though surprised, smiled. "Why?"

"Because... uh, can I?"

Celestia held her forelegs out. "Of course."

Cadance stepped forward and wrapped her forehooves around Celestia, who wrapped her forelegs and wings around Cadance.

The two sat like that for a few minutes, just hugging each other. Cadance was actually rubbing Celestia the whole time, giving the Princess of the Sun a gentle massage.

"Is this about Takumi?" Celestia whispered.

Cadance nodded. "He was just so... soft..."

"So you did get a chance to hug him."

"Mhm. Only for a moment, but... yeah..."

"Hm."

"I'm also just... concerned about the fact that he has C I P A. That has to be the worst thing anypony could have. And he's an Alicorn. How is he supposed to know if he's exerting his magic?"

"He won't. He will need to find a balance. An area of magic he knows he won't exert himself in."

Cadance shuddered. "How can somepony like him have something so... so crippling?"

"Cadance..." Celestia caressed the Love Princess' ear. "There are many things Takumi could have had that are much worse."

"Like what? What could be-... okay, there's a lot of things that are worse than not being able to feel pain... especially when applying it to an Alicorn..."

"Many things, Cadance."

The pair continued to hug each other for another moment before Cadance finally broke away. Her body shuddered from the sudden lack of warmth.

"Well, see you later," she said, standing up and putting some saddlebags on.

Celestia nodded. "You too. It was nice seeing you again, Cadance."

"You too. It was nice to uh... meet Takumi and Itsuki." Cadance opened the door, stepping out into the hall with Celestia behind her.

"So, to be clear," Cadance began. "I'm NOT stopping by Ponyville to take Itsuki to the Crystal Empire?"

"No," Celestia replied. "You are not."

"Then when should I expect Takumi to come to the Empire? You said you wanted him to go there."

"Hopefully within the week. I really want him to explore. Get a better grasp on Equestria."

"Hm. Okay. Well, bye."

"Goodbye, Cadance."

Cadance waved goodbye before walking down the hallway. She ignored any and all guards who bowed for her all the way until she exited into the parking lot.

The first thing she noticed was that Luna's Skyline was gone. The second thing she noticed was a new sports car parked next to her Miura P400 SVJ Spider. Said sports car made her take in a sharp breath. It also made her break into a sprint as she fully processed what the car was.

She skidded to a stop in front of the car. It was a classic sports car not much older than her Miura. It had a long front end, a somewhat low-slung design, with classic bespoke rims paired with modern high-performance tires. Its color was a light shade of Cherry Blossom Pink, and it had two white circles painted on its small doors. Within them sat the number 86. Cadance was speechless.

"A Series 1 Ferrari 250 GTO..." she mumbled.

She peered at the black left-hoof-drive interior the best she could. It was hard, as the windows were tinted, but she could tell that the car had some modern enhancements. Bucket Seats, modernized electricals, all of which made the car something of a restomod.

Cadance smiled as she stepped back from the two cars. Using her magic, she pulled a camera out from one of her saddlebags, turning it on and pointing it at the cars.

She chuckled. "Now there's a sight for sore eyes," she said as she snapped a picture. "Two legendary supercars from decades past." She looked around as she stuffed the camera into her saddlebag. "I wonder who owns this. They must be RICH if they prefer to actually drive the thing."

She opened the portside door of her Miura, threw the saddlebags in the passenger seat, then with a quick spell, shrunk herself.

Well, not shrunk. She really just turned into a juvenile form of herself, thus allowing her to actually fit in the Miura. She looked incredibly cute this way.

Getting in the Miura, Cadance levitated the key into the ignition and turned it, firing up the its Carbureted 3.9 Liter V12 Engine. She spent about a minute letting it warm up a little before putting it into gear and exiting the parking lot. She made her way through the city of Canterlot, following any and all traffic laws like a good pony. She came to an intersection and was just about to drive through before she stopped.

On the right was the road that would lead to the Canterlot Turnpike. Straight ahead was the road that lead to the main underground highway that spiraled down the inside of the mountain and out the bottom.

She tapped her chin as she thought back to a few days ago, when Celestia accidentally forced her to watch Takumi and Itsuki battle Nightmare Moon and Heartbreaker. She shuddered. Heartbreaker. To think she had a dark form like that...

Then, she smiled. She flicked the blinker on, then turned right to accelerate down the road. She stuck to the speed limit as she exited the city. She drove past the Turnpike Parking Lot, eyeing a few cars parked in it. She looked forward.

Suddenly, she accelerated.

She accelerated hard.

360 Carbureted Horses were transferred through the tires and into the tarmac, launching the Miura forward. Cadance bit her lip as she shifted gears, keeping the throttle wide open. Her speed exceeded 100MPH as the first corner came into view. She put the clutch in and braked hard, nearly locking up the wheels as she wedged the Miura into the turn.

Maintaining full grip, Cadance shot around the inside before rocketing out of the turn, shifting gears as fast as she could. The Miura took the the spirited driving well as it hammered through the next corner at moderate speeds, engine working to ensure smooth power delivery with all 12 Cylinders Firing. It sang at 8500RPM as the Miura sped down a straightaway.

Brakelights lit up as the Miura tore into the first hairpin, gripping around it and exiting at speed. Cadance pushed the accelerator all the way to the floor as she went through a left curve.

This proved too much for the tires, as the the Miura suddenly oversteered. Cadance grunted as she ripped the steering wheel in the opposite direction, trying to stop the skid. This only made things worse as the Miura snapped the other way. She just held the clutch and brakes and braced herself as the the Miura spun into the dirt, coming to a stop.

After a second, Cadance chuckled. "Ohhh I haven't driven this road in a while. It feels good to let loose every once in a while." She sighed. "Well, I've got the rest of the road to go. Let's have some fun, Mi Amore Miura!"

She shifted back into first gear and accelerated, kicking up dirt before getting back on the road and speeding down the mountain.





vroooooooooooooOOOOOOOOOOOOM!

Itsuki screamed with glee as he watched his 86 do a run on the dynamometer.

"TWO HUNDRED HORSEPOWER BABY! WOO!"

Polara stopped the run and shut off the engine. "Heck yeah!" he exclaimed as he got out. "It is... six twenty. Great."

"We'll have PLENTY of time to sort out the suspension before you need to go!" Lenovo said.

"Heck yeah!" Itsuki yelled. "I can't thank you two enough for helping me with this. You have no idea how much I've wanted to just get a bunch of parts and stick them onto my 86."

"Hey, don't forget about Cassidy Creek," Polara said. "She's the one running out to pick up the suspension."

Itsuki chuckled. "Right, right. I swear, her name sounds like the name of an actual creek somewhere."

"That's because it is. It's a creek in a canyon near uh... near the Rocky Mountains out west. Raton Canyon I think is the name."

"Ah yeah. Raton Canyon. Forgot about that one," Lenovo said.

"Mm. Well, now we just wait for her to get here." Itsuki looked at Scootaloo. "So, Scootaloo, how have you been doing so far?"

"Freaking..." Scootaloo chuckled. "Awesome. It feels like I'm discovering flight!"

"Ha! Yeah, it's pretty sweet, huh? Learning to Modify Cars?"

"Yeah. And don't worry, I've been sticking by your advice on keeping everything FIRMLY bolted down."

Itsuki smiled. "Yep. Great job on that. I don't wanna see you get hurt because you didn't bolt a part down properly."

Scootaloo smiled. "Hm... hey, Itsuki?"

"Yeah?"

"Why is it you want everything bolted down properly? I mean, I know why, but what made you start uh... prioritizing it? Is that the right word?"

Itsuki's smile faded. "Why do I prioritize it?"

"Yeah."

Itsuki looked at Lenovo and Polara, who were now sitting down and looking at him. 

"I mean..." He looked down. "Do you really want to hear it?"

"Yeah," Scootaloo cheerfully replied.

"Is it somethin' bad?" Lenovo asked.

Itsuki's ears flattened. "It... yeah."

Scootaloo's ears flattened. "What happened?"

"I..." Itsuki sighed. "Alright, fine, no point in sugarcoating it." Itsuki chuckled a bit. "Sugarcoating... hey, if you want me to stop, just tell me, alright?"

Scootaloo nodded. "Don't worry. I've heard a lot of scary stories."

"Not anything like this."





November 15th, 1987. Shibukawa, Japan.

It was a clear day in the city of Shibukawa. People milled about, working to sell product and moving boxes. Down an expressway came a relatively new 1985 Toyota Corolla GT-APEX 3 Door Levin. It was silver in color and had no special additions. No modifications whatsoever. It was an all-original Levin.

In the front seats sat an old couple. Atsushi Takeuchi and Sayori Yuuki, who were 72 and 68 respectively. They quietly talked as Yuichi drove, coaxing the AE86 along. In the backseat sat 8 year old Itsuki Takeuchi. He looked out the window with a smile on his face, admiring the buildings going by.

"Hey grandpa, you think mom and dad have a big surprise waiting for me?" Itsuki asked.

Atsushi chuckled. "I'm sure they have something, kiddo."

Itsuki let out a happy sigh. "To think after all this time, we're finally going to live in Shibukawa!"

"YOU'RE gonna live in Shibukawa. Itsuki, you know you were only living with us because your parents had to get the new house set up."

"Hm. It's gonna be weird, not living with you guys anymore."

"We're only a short drive away," Sayori said.

"Short?! We've been driving for hours!"

"Half an hour, Itsuki. Barely that."

Itsuki folded his arms. "Feels like a lot longer."

"That's what happens when you're excited," Atsushi said.

Itsuki pursed his lips as the expressway began 

"Hey, we were thinking of heading out to a restaurant tomorrow. How does that sound?"

"Yes! Which one?"

"How about the Fujiwara Tofu Shop?"

"The what?"

"The-"

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Before anyone could do or say anything, a semi truck and trailer came smashing through the center barriers, doing well over 80KMPH.

Itsuki had only noticed the truck when his grandparents started screaming. Tires squealed as Atsushi locked up all four wheels, trying to slow down and turn.

Lock up all four tires, steer.

Those did not go together.

The 86 suffered immense understeer as the front tires found zero grip.

"ITSUKI, GET DOWN!"

CRASH!!

The 86 and Cab-Over Semi SLAMMED into each other head-on at a combined speed of over 100KMPH. The 86's lightweight chassis was zero match for the Cab-Over's Heavy, Rigid, Utilitarian Frame. The entire front half of the 86 was crushed in, and the 4A-GEU engine was ejected backwards into the cabin along with the suspension and front end.

Itsuki's seatbelt worked serious overtime keeping him in the backseat. The front seats slammed backwards into the aforementioned backseat. The bolts also worked overtime to keep it in place, however, the front seats had slammed into Itsuki, knocking him out cold.w

Several minutes later, Itsuki woke to find himself sitting next to an ambulance.

"You okay, kid?" a paramedic asked, bending down.

"I... yeah... what happened?"

The paramedic sighed. "A semi slammed into your grandparent's car. We got you out a minute ago."

"Oh."

Battered, Bruised, Dazed and Confused, Itsuki stood up. He was alive.





"The same could... not be said about my grandparents," Itsuki stated, now holding Scootaloo. "There was no chance. The second the engine came back, they were... yeah."

"Dang..." Lenovo trailed.

"It took my parents not even five minutes to get there after that. They had- well, still have, a blue-ish 1983 Corolla. This piece of crap Automatic FF that my dad's been driving into the ground for a decade plus." Itsuki scoffed. "Not to mention it's diesel."

"Anyways," he continued. "When they told me that the reason the Semi had jumped the barriers was because the bolts on the steering rack weren't fastened properly. They fell out a mile or so before the crash even happened. The semi hit a bump, which launched the steering rack upwards and somehow hit the brake servo and master cylinder."

"Then, they told me that the reason I was alive was because the bolts holding the backseat in were perfectly fastened. Had the seat come lose, I would've been launched forward into where everything was being... crushed..."

Scootaloo wrapped her fuzzy hooves around Itsuki. The Alicorn smiled and hugged her back.

"After they told me those, I guess it just imprinted on me. Ever since then, I've always made sure to screw any bolts down to the perfect amount. Heck, when I first got my 85, I spent the entire afternoon checking and screwing every single bolt I could find."

"That's good..." Scootaloo mumbled, loving how soft Itsuki was.

After a few seconds, Itsuki chuckled. "Heh, you know, my grandparents owning an 86 is actually what got me into 86's. They're the ones who even made me know about the thing. Sure I probably would've found out about 86's one way or another, but still."

Scootaloo shuddered.

"Hey, don't worry. I'm alive," Itsuki reassured. "And the two lived pretty long."

Scootaloo pulled herself away. "I just... wow... to think not securing a single bolt down can kill..."

"Yeah, that's why I think everyone should always check and re-check every single bolt that belongs to their ride."

"Mm... Well, I Pinkie Promise I'll always check and recheck all the bolts I come across, when I get a car."

"Hm. Well then." Itsuki looked at Lenova and Polara. "Shall we get to tuning my suspension?"

"Considering I've been here for a while now, absolutely," a new female voice said.

The four looked to the garage entrance to spot Cassidy Creek. A Yellow Mare with White Hair.

"Ah. Hey Cassidy," Polara greeted.

"Hey. So uh, wow. Never thought somepony like you would have something like that happen to them."

Itsuki shrugged.

"Hey, where the heck is... what was it... Japan?" Lenovo asked. "I've never heard of a place called that."

Itsuki chuckled. "It's... It's a LONG way from here. I can tell you that much."

Lenovo chuckled. "I'll need to look it up. Anyways! Cassidy! You got those suspension parts?"

"A freaking truckload," Cassidy replied. "So to lighten things up a bit, who wants to get this Levin set up? Because I sure do!"

Itsuki smiled. "Yes! Scootaloo, mind getting off of me?"

Scootaloo obliged. "I'm gonna help, right?"

"Yep! Of course you can!"

The filly squeed.

"We're gonna test this at the Fieldsdale Circuit, right?" Cassidy asked.


Robert Patton - Top of The Pop starts playing.

Itsuki looked at her. "The Fieldsdale Circuit?"

"Ha! You don't know? It's less than a mile away. We can test it there. PLUS there's a track day event going on, so there's a bunch of racers you can practice against."

The biggest smile appeared on Itsuki's face. "Oh. HELL. YES!"

Minutes later, the five were working on Itsuki's Levin. Lenovo and Polara worked on the engine and electricals while Itsuki, Cassidy, and Scootaloo worked on the Suspension.

Only one of them rivaled Itsuki's excitement, and that was Scootaloo. You'd think she had just discovered her ability to fly with how giddy she was. The filly had never thought she'd gain so much satisfaction from screwing in a few bolts. Building a car was fun, but modifying one? There wasn't a feeling like it.

By now, what was once a bone-stock engine bay with original parts had turned into an amazing mix of the best TRD and HKS parts money could buy. The same went for the suspension.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!

Tires squealed as Itsuki's 86 Levin shot around a corner. The 4A-GE roared with newfound power, allowing the 86 to easily keep up with a Civic EK. Itsuki bit his lip as he stuck to the EK's bumper like glue. A stupendously excited Scootaloo sat in the passenger seat, squeeing as Itsuki snagged the inside line away from the EK, passing it instantly.

Not ten minutes later, Itsuki, Scootaloo, Cassidy and Co. were installing a brand new Differential with Carbon Fiber Clutch Plates.

The second they were done with the installation, Itsuki and Scootaloo were back out on the track, passing racer after racer.. Though Itsuki was mostly getting used to his new power, he was also half-teaching Scootaloo on how to drive fast.

Half-Teaching.

"I FREAKING LOVE THIS!" Itsuki yelled as he shifted gears faster than ever before.

As the sun set, his race against Thunderlane and his E30 Evo was on the horizon. His speed had doubled, and his 86's racing efficiency was better than ever.

He was ready for battle.